Prince Harry was the glaring omission in the iconic Buckingham Palace balcony photo taken during King Charles III's coronation overnight.
King Charles III was crowned in a ceremony at Westminster Abbey on Saturday (local time) after becoming monarch upon the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, in September last year.
Following the service at Westminster Abbey, the royals went back to Buckingham Palace for the famed balcony photo, but Prince Harry was notably absent.
According to CNN, Harry didn't receive an invitation to join the family for the photograph, which featured a slimmed-down flypast by the Royal Air Force due to bad weather. Prince Andrew wasn't present either.
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The Royal Family appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace in the early hours of Sunday morning (NZ time) to loud applause from the throngs of people gathered outside the palace.
King Charles III and Queen Camilla waved and were joined by other members of the family, including the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children.
"I guess the elephant in the room is the presence of Harry right now," Channel 7 host Michael Usher told viewers in Australia following the ceremony.
"I guess there might have been some hope that he might come to the palace and join in some family celebration, but certainly not part of any entourage."
The Daily Mail UK reports that after just 28 hours and 42 minutes in the UK, Harry was back on a plane to the US before his father and stepmother had even finished having their official portraits taken.
Harry was reportedly eager to get back to his California home to celebrate the birthday of his oldest child Archie, which was on the same day as his father's coronation.
CNN royal historian Kate Williams previously described Harry's appearance at the coronation as a "flying visit".
"[Prince Harry] is coming for this major event of his father's coronation but it's not going to be a family reunion. We're not going to see lots of big family meet-ups. Certainly, there has been damage done," she explained, adding that Harry's presence was a "show of unity".
Harry also came under fire for fidgeting during the service, with royal expert Angela Rippon saying she was "disappointed" to see him appearing unfocused on the historic proceedings.
"I was disappointed by the number of occasions when I saw Harry, who has flown all of this way to be here, and he wasn't even watching," Rippon said
"He had his head down, and he was sort of looking at the floor, rather than following what was actually happening in front of him in the abbey."
Earlier on Saturday morning (local time), Harry was among the first group of royals to enter the church, arriving alongside his uncles, Prince Edward and Prince Andrew, and two of his cousins, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie.
Harry sat with Andrew in the third row of the service. Both are non-working royals and did not perform any duties during the ceremony.
